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By Stephen Hawkins
The Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Rory Sabbatini knows he will need to take a break to avoid becoming fatigued and frustrated.

Since his impressive streak of three top-three finishes that included the Masters and Wachovia, Sabbatini has started to feel the effects of playing so much.

Rory Sabbatini tees off at 8:05 a.m. on Thursday. (WireImage)

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"Actually, everything still is really good,'' Sabbatini said Wednesday. "Last week, I kind of felt my body at the end of the week and just wasn't able to keep myself mentally focused. That's just wear and tear from playing a couple of events in a row.''

Still, time off will have to wait until after the Colonial, his fifth straight tournament -- and one not far from his home in Southlake.

"I look forward to it every year. It's a great event,'' Sabbatini said. "There is obviously a great tradition behind it.''

Sabbatini didn't skip Hogan's Alley, where the course itself is one of the biggest parts of the tradition. He has already withdrawn from next week's Memorial, another tournament he has always enjoyed, but knows he needs a breather before the U.S. Open next month.

Sabbatini tied for third at the Wachovia Championship despite a closing 74, which came a day after he matched the course record of 64 and said how much he wanted to play in the final group with Tiger Woods. Sabbatini was 44th at THE PLAYERS Championship and closed with a 73 at last week's AT&T Classic to tie for 24th.

"I could tell my body was getting a little tired,'' he said. "I felt good going into the last two weeks, but just haven't felt that same ability to be able to maintain my focus throughout the rounds.''

After getting home from Georgia, Sabbatini didn't hit a golf ball until playing in the pro-am event Wednesday. He spent Tuesday driving a stock car 160 mph during a NASCAR driving school at Texas Motor Speedway.

This is Sabbatini's 15th tournament this season. He has made 11 cuts with four top-10 finishes (only one fewer than last season) and is 13th on the money list with $1.7 million.

The youngest player on the PGA TOUR when he was a 22-year-old rookie in 1999, Sabbatini is now a veteran who knows when he can't keep pushing himself to play.

"That's definitely getting to know my body better and realizing that being worn out and fatigued and getting frustrated is not exactly beneficial to me,'' the South African said.

Herron, who beat Richard Johnson in a two-hole playoff last year, is defending a title for the first time since the 1999 Bay Hill Invitational. But the husky golfer known as "Lumpy'' who is popular among his peers and the fans isn't exactly playing top-notch golf.

In 26 tournaments since winning Colonial for his fourth career victory, Herron has no top-10 finishes and has been better than 31st only three times -- the last time when he was 19th in the season opener this year.

"I don't know if I'm completely prepared to defend,'' Herron said. "I've struggled since probably last year's Colonial. But you know what, before I won Colonial last year, I was struggling. So you just never know in golf.''